


Of Chaos and Stars

by SibilantWhisper



Category: Sonic Underground, Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, F/M, Fusion of Sonic Universes, Interstellar 5555 plot, M/M, Prince Sonic, Shadow has the cutest crush, Sonadow - Freeform, daft punk - Freeform, rating will probably change later, shit happens
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-29
Updated: 2016-03-29
Packaged: 2018-05-29 22:42:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6396919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SibilantWhisper/pseuds/SibilantWhisper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On the distant planet of Mobius, peace is abruptly broken when Queen Aleena's children are kidnapped by a mad scientist who wishes to abuse their skills. The galactic police force G.U.N is alerted, and two agents are sent in hot pursuit. Will they succeed?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One More Time

**Author's Note:**

> This is an adaption of the movie Interstella 5555, using the Sonic crew. The story remains similar to the original plotline but with plenty of changes. I wouldn't say you have to see it to understand what's going on, but I would highly recommend it for several reasons. It's a great piece of work. Song used in this chapter is One More Time, by Daft Punk. It is necessary for the story flow and is not a song fic.

 

… _Far from Earth, in a distant galaxy, there was a planet called Mobius. This planet was a peaceful one, which reveled in the freedom and fun they had been denied for so many years. Music had become a sacred past time for Mobians, as it brought everyone together. Sonic Underground, a band of triplets who were held on the highest level of esteem for their melodies, occasionally held a concert or event as a gift to their people. And when they did…_

Shrieking fireworks spiraled high into the night sky, bursting into multicolored sparks above the Freedom Stadium in Star Light Zone. The light show lit up the stage and ground below, along with the weaving strobe lights that swept over the dancing crowd. Mobians of every age and species moved to the rhythm, enticed by the music that flooded from the large speakers up front. Another set of fireworks shot off into the sky, timed to perfection as a melodious voice rang out from the stage.

" ** _One more time!_** _"_

The smoke left behind cleared away, revealing a cobalt hedgehog on electric guitar, crooning into the microphone in front him. Among the crowd but unheard, there was an excited shriek, as a pink hedgehog desperately pushed her way closer to the stage, pointing frantically.

" _Cream!_ Oh Cream there he is! Can you believe we're this close?" She tugged on the hand that clasped her own, unable to spare a glance at the friend who accompanied her. A much younger and smaller, cream colored rabbit stepped closer to her side, simply smiling as she nodded.

"Yes, Amy—"

"Oh my god, he's so dreamy! I never knew he looked so amazing in person!" Amy squealed, inadvertently squeezing her best friend's hand. "Oh, It sucks Tikal couldn't come with us!" She let out a gasp, her eyes twinkling in pleasure. "Which was her favorite again?" Cream stepped to the side to avoid an enthusiastic Mobian bumping into her.

"Um, I think it was—"

"Manic! _Eeek!_ Look at how adorable he is on the drums!" The gleeful hedgehog bounced up and down, thoroughly immersed into the music as the percussion started up. Cream was taken along for the ride, as her hand was still tightly clasped.

"A-ah, Amy!" Her cries caused her friend to look back, smiling sheepishly when she realized her actions.

"I'm sorry Cream. I just—" Cream giggled, moving closer so that they had less chance of being jostled apart.

"It's okay Amy," she replied sweetly, closing her eyes as the powerful melody washed over her as well. "I'm happy to be here too." Amy smiled brightly and turned back to the stage, her eyes lighting up once again as her heartthrob pulled off a spectacular spin while playing, all without a hitch.

"Oh, _Sonic_ …"

Sonic leaned towards the mic again, eyes closed as the lyrics fell from his mouth. Two voices melded with his perfectly, harmonizing in a way that seemed ethereal. To his right, Manic drummed expertly to the beat, caught up in the tune just as much as the audience was. To the left, Sonia leaned over her keyboard, swaying gracefully as her slender fingers danced along the keys. The music pounded from the speakers as they sang, and on occasion they would allow their eyes to open only to enjoy watching the energetic crowd.

" ** _One more time—_**  
**_we're gonna celebrate, oh yeah, all right—_ _  
__don't stop the dancing!_** _"_

Sonic rocked back and forth, strumming his fingers along the strings of the double necked guitar in his hands. A spotlight spun around to focus on him, bathing him in a purple ray that played off the shine of his instrument. His emerald green eyes took in the audience, watching as his fellow Mobians gyrated and grooved to the beat with rapture; he winked, just before stepping back into a wild spin and repeating the chorus.

Girls were heard shrieking in response, somehow managing to be heard over the music, and the blue prince couldn't help the dazzling grin that spread across his face. The beat paused for a spell, the only sound being three sharp raps of the bass drum as Manic tapped his foot on the pedal. Sonic reached out to pull the mic towards him, silent and still. Emerald green greeted the crowd in an intense stare...before he smirked and joined them in shouting the words.

" ** _One more time!_** _"_

All three instruments joined in on cue, as colorful sparks erupted from the stage. Cheers rang out from the sea of Mobians, encouraging the triplets to play even louder. Manic twirled his drumsticks and threw them into the air before catching them in mid beat, while Sonia crossed her hands and spun around. Sonic made a show of twisting his guitar around before playing behind his back. Fans went wild, shouting out the name of their most celebrated band: _Sonic Underground_. Cameras zoomed in close, as cameramen off to the side of the stage focused on making sure to provide the best shots to those who couldn't be there.

xxx

Meanwhile, miles away at the very edges of the zone where the concert took place, two Mobians watched in awe on a wide surveillance screen in the watch tower they were stationed at. A fox kit with a pair of tails, and a young bee sat at the console, eyes large as they took in the erratic lights and powerful performance.

" _Wow!"_ the bee cried. "I've never seen them perform live- I only heard the songs before." He turned to his friend, translucent wings beating rapidly as he hovered excitedly. "This is great! Thanks Tails!"

Tails beamed back at him, tapping his fingers subconsciously to the rhythm as they continued to watch. The fact that he was able to focus despite the loud beeps and clicks that came from the other computers and machines in the room showed how much of a fanboy he was. Tails however, would claim he was much more than that. He had loved Sonic Underground from the start, simply because of the meaning they spread with their music. It didn't help that he thought of them as his idols, shining beacons of what he one day hoped to mean to the entire population of Mobius. Until that day however, he would be happy with simply being security's maintenance boy.

"Hey, hey Vector! This is so cool, you should come see this!" the bee cried, calling to the leader of the Chaotix security team. The large reptile was currently reclining in a chair and hiding behind a copy of the _Starlight Times_ , seemingly oblivious to the antics of the two _fan boys_ in the room. A snort was all the response he received at first, before Vector turned the page continued to read.

"No thanks, Charmy. I got nothing against your little group, but Sonic Underground just ain't my kinda music. Know what I mean?" The younger bee blinked innocently a few times before smiling.

"Oh."

"Besides, I got all the jams I need _right here_ ," he said, momentarily lowering his paper to point to his ever present headphones. Charmy giggled. "What?"

"Well that's funny! You must be listening to something good if the beat you've been tapping your foot to all this time has the same rhythm as this," he grinned, pointing to the screen where the trio were once again belting out the chorus. Tails turned around just in time to catch Vector freezing up and broke into laughter when he noticed the light blush gracing the crocodile's cheeks.

"I knew it!" Vector growled, shaking his fist.

"Oh shut up, Tails! You too, Charmy!" Their antics were cut short as a low and calm voice interrupted.

"If Knuckles catches any of you not working, you realize it'll be your heads." The purple chameleon walked in quietly, gaze shifting from each of them (and for a second, to the widescreen monitor behind them) as if waiting for an answer, despite his statement being a fact, not a question. Vector jumped at his sudden appearance, nearly falling out of his chair and glaring at his stoic teammate.

"Do you _have_ to be so quiet?" He yelled, receiving a look that told him he was foolish for even asking. Charmy flew over, zipping around the room excitedly as the music continued to play.

"But it's fun, Espio! I've never seen Sonic Underground perform, and Tails thought it would be pretty effi—eficie— _cool_ since we're the security team and if anything happened we'd have to see it anyway and-" Espio held up a hand, stopping the young bee before he did another lap around the room.

"I get it, Charmy. I don't really mind," the chameleon replied. They bee's eyes grew large, almost pleading.

"Then you'll watch with us?" Espio frowned.

"I never said—"

" _Pleeease?"_ Charmy pleaded anxiously. Tails in turn gave him a wounded puppy look that hardly belonged on a fox to begin with, and finding himself outnumbered (Vector wasn't going to help him of course, and Mighty was on break…)…Espio sighed.

"Alright, I suppose it couldn't hurt."

"Yay!" Charmy cheered happily and flew back to Tails' side, humming along with the song. Vector put down his paper, kicking back since he no longer needed to pretend he wasn't paying attention to the concert.

"If you ask me, there's nothing wrong with taking it easy nowadays. Ever since that whole Black War business, there's been nothing but peace. Who would dare ruin _tonight_?" Espio said nothing, simply nodding absently.

"Hm."

"Turn it up, Tails!"

xxx

The wild beat in the song came to a halt as the boys silenced their instruments, leaving Sonia to play quietly, lending a gentle solo to back up Sonic's lone voice.

" ** _You know I'm just feeling…celebration tonight._** **  
****_Celebrate, don't wait too late._**  
**_No, we don't stop. You can't stop…we're gonna celebrate._ _  
__…_** _._ ** _One more time…_ _one more time…_** _ **one more time**._ _"_

Manic began to drum lightly on the cymbals, rising in tempo with Sonic's voice even as his own joined him.

" ** _Celebration, you know we're gonna do it alright-_**  
 **_tonight, hey just feeling…_**  
 **_Music's got me feeling the need…need, yeah…come on, all right._ _  
__We're gonna celebrate, one more time…_** _"_

The crowd had all begun to sway as one, some closing their eyes as what the trio were trying to say reached their hearts. Wars, hardship, days of fear and dark times were over now that Black Doom was gone, and so he had been for years now. Queen Aleena had never given up, had hidden her children away in the hopes that together with the Freedom Fighters, they could overcome the blight that had plagued their planet. After years of patience, salvation had come, and Mobius was saved. Now were the times to be thankful, eager to spread joy, freedom and pride. To enjoy these peaceful times, they would celebrate and continue to prosper.

No one could be prouder than a Mobian tonight. That was what spoke volumes in the trio's voices as Sonia finally joined in, the lyrics beginning to transform into a hypnotic chant, accompanied by the crowd's united voice, asking for it once more, over and over.

" ** _Celebrate and dance so free,_**  
**_Music's got me feeling so free,_ _  
_**_**Celebrate and dance so free,** "_

" _One more time…"_

" ** _Music's got me feeling so free,_**  
**_We're gonna celebrate,_ _  
__Celebrate and dance so free…_** _"_

_"One more time…"_

" ** _Music's got me feeling so free,_**  
**_We're gonna celebrate,_ _  
_**_**Celebrate and dance so free…** "_

Just as their voices began to rise in volume with each repetition, mimicking the triplets-the music halted, bringing the audience to an immediate hush. There was a beat of silence as everyone stilled, and Sonic glanced up, eyes ablaze and a trademark grin on his face. His gloved hand rose in the air, holding up a single finger. As he brought his hand down against the strings, every voice launched into a powerful cry:

" ** _ONE MORE TIME!_** _"_

The music flooded out of the speakers again in a powerful wave, sweeping the crowd back into the melody as if it had never stopped. Back in the watch tower, Charmy and Tails were cheering loudly to the point of no return, completely blown away by the performance.

" _Whoa!_ Did you see that?"

"That was _so_ cool!"

"I wish I were there!"

"Can we meet them? I wanna meet them!"

Espio couldn't hide his small smile as he watched them, only admitting privately that he was just as awed by the performance. The Queen's children may not have played the largest of roles in the war, but they were known as veteran freedom fighters and respected for it. To bring such an impact to their planet and people even after the war, and with such talent…it was astounding. He continued to watch the performance, thoroughly engrossed now. Vector was too busy fending off Tails and Charmy as the duo ganged up on him, demanding to hear him compliment the band. It was unfortunate that Mighty took his time on break, as no one noticed one of the screens behind them showing a blinking dot on the radar, signaling that an unannounced spacecraft was approaching the planet…

_Meanwhile, off planet Mobius…_

DOCTOR. DESTINATION 662487 HAS BEEN REACHED. PERMISSION TO PROCEED…

"Permission granted. Proceed with the retrieval."

…PERMISSION CONFIRMED. AS YOU COMMAND DOCTOR.

* * *

To be continued in chapter two: Judas

  _The calm before the storm_ … Hello again; for those reading this newly revised chapter, I apologize for the wait. The continuation starts now.


	2. Judas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are not as peaceful as they seem as Mobius suffers a major security breach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm attempting to put together an OST together as I write the chapters. For your optional listening pleasure, the mood songs for this chapter are Landfall - Castle Crashers OST and Aerodynamic by Daft Punk.

Outside of the planet Mobius, the silence and stillness of space remained absolute despite the festivities going on planet-side. Just as silently, a large space ship shimmered into view, its cloaking field deactivated now that it was the proper proximity to the planet. Rust red doors parted on its underside and two miniature ships, replicas of the very one they departed from, were released. An odd logo that appeared to grin maniacally decorated their sides.

DEPLOYING SWAT AND E-SERIES TEAMS TO 662487 SURFACE. MISSION STATUS: STANDBY.

The two ships swept down towards the planet, silent and swift upon entry into the atmosphere. Almost immediately, the pair shifted into stealth mode and parted ways, each headed for their own designated targets. One made way for the zone that was full of bright lights and cheering-the signs of a celebration ongoing. The remaining ship veered to the right, sweeping low to the ground so as to remain undetected. Leaving the industrial setting of the previous zone behind, it rocketed over open valleys that quickly bled into the dense foliage of a forest as the ship sped on. Here, the ship changed course and began to ascend as its target loomed ahead. Virtually impossible to reach by normal means, an ancient and sacred land that had at one time been one with the ground below it hovered above all.

Angel Island.

The ship approached from below, clearing the tops of the trees and landing onto a bare strip of land. The cloaking deactivated and a door slid open; stoically a small, robotic form stepped out, its oval face turning as it analyzed the area. The build was similar to that of a Mobian, with a grey, metallic bi-pedal body and eyes a wan yellow. Paying the troop of SWAT bots that marched out behind it no real acknowledgement, the robot's internal systems hummed as it scanned the area. Heavy metallic thudding sounded from behind as another robot stepped into view. A large ' _104_ ' was painted onto its bulbous orange base, which rested on top of a hydraulic system that served as its legs. Twin missile launchers replaced normal robotic hands, and now at the ready it came to stand beside its fellow robot. The grey one turned abruptly, eyes glowing brightly as it found what it was looking for and locked on. Not far from where the ship had landed, the tip of a temple could be seen above the tops of the jungle trees. The robot beeped.

E-SERIES 121 PHI - 104 EPSILON REPORTING. SHIP HAS SUCESSFULLY LANDED ON DESIGNATED TARGET. BEGINNING RETRIEVAL MISSION.

xxx

_'Is it too much to ask for some coffee when you're working a double shift?'_ The grumbled thought belonged to a female echidna that was busy flipping through the pages of an extensive report.

"Ma'am would you like me to get you something?" asked a voice. Julie-Su blinked, and turned to the inquirer.

_'Thank Chaos_ , _'_ She nodded.

"Thank you, Fiona. Coffee would be nice- _but no cream though_ ," She added before the young fox smiled and quickly left the room. She nearly bumped into someone as the doors slid open, and fumbled over an apology as she bypassed him. Knuckles stepped into the control room of Angel Island security, amethyst eyes sweeping over the dozen or so workers crowded in the moderately sized room. He sniffed as he noted the lot of them huddled over computers or in front of large screens that displayed schematics about the island and the planet itself. He'd never been one for all this… _technology_ stuff. If you couldn't do something with your own two hands and senses…hmph. He frowned when his eyes settled on a familiar face.

"Hey Su," he greeted. The female looked up at his call, swiveling around in the command chair she was seated in.

"Knuckles, you're early." She placed the report on the armrest. He stopped by her chair and leaned against it, raising both brow ridges in mild surprise.

"I am? I thought you'd be gone already." He watched her frown at that. "How long you got left?"

"Just an hour," she sighed, her cybernetic dreadlock swaying as she titled her head to look at him. "It isn't much I know, but I'd asked for time off. Yet I'm pulling time to cover a few shifts thanks to the concert going on in Star Light. Even _Shade_ went." She fought back a yawn. Knuckles crossed his arms and shrugged, not seeming to think much of it.

"Any day _those_ hedgehogs are on stage, it's like a planet wide holiday. Not surprising that anyone took the day off to attend." Now it was Julie-Su's turn to raise a brow ridge.

"You sure you should be referring to the Queen's _children_ , that way?" She warned, though it was half-hearted. They both knew she didn't care enough to try and berate him for his lack of respect. "You almost sound like you have something against them."

"Hmph," Knuckles turned away, glancing around to make sure they weren't overheard amongst the humdrum of typing and murmuring. When he turned back, Julie-Su was waiting expectantly. "I met them once," he admitted, the frown on his face clearly indicating that he wished otherwise. "Came with the Oracle and the Queen one day to experience Chaos channeling first hand, and I just happened to be there that day…" he trailed off. Julie-Su nudged him with her booted foot, urging him on impatiently.

" _And?_ " Knuckles rolled his eyes, sighing.

"The blue one moves around too much and _never_ shuts up, the green one talks oddly half the time and doesn't seem to move _enough_ , and Sonia tends to have that spoiled princess attitude," He grumbled, unaware of the look his friend was shooting him. "She's not that bad though, probably the only one of the three with her head on straight. I think it was all that time they spent separated and in hiding, who knows what kind of lives they had while Black Doom was— _what_?" he asked, finally noticing Julie-Su's expression.

"She must be something if she has you calling her by name," she teased. Red blossomed over the echidna's beige muzzle, and he glared when she grinned in response.

"You know what? I was gonna take over your remaining shift but you can _forget_ it!" Julie-Su laughed as his outburst caused a few heads to turn in their direction.

"Oh come on, I was just teas-" A voice to her left cut her off.

"Ma'am?" The two echidnas turned to a yellow squirrel who sat at a console, half turned away from it as he held a headset away from his ears. He wore a worried look.

"What is it, Ray?" Julie-Su answered, her tone immediately sharp as she turned her seat to face him. Knuckles stood at her side, completely serious as well. The squirrel typed away at the keyboard in front of him, and the large screen he faced changed to show a diagram of the planet. A blinking red dot was present, positioned outside of its atmosphere.

"There is an unidentified spacecraft outside of Mobius, and we haven't received word from the security team responsible for that sector." An orange grid popped up, floating around the diagram of the planet to show this. Violet eyes narrowed as Julie-Su observed it.

"Star Light Zone is included in the list that sector covers," Knuckles pointed out.

"Who's the team stationed there?" she asked.

"Um," Ray tapped a few keys, pulling up a list immediately. "Chaotix, ma'am." He missed his superior rolling her eyes at his words.

"Oh great, my shift just couldn't end without _them_ screwing up a simple ID procedure," She griped, her attitude a bit more relaxed towards the situation. Knuckles gave her a disapproving look.

"Hey, _I'm_ the one who recruited and assigned that team, Su. They aren't as bad as you make them out to be." His friend shot him a look of her own, one that clearly disagreed.

"You know as well as I do that Chaotix has as many flaws as they do merits. Vector and that hyperactive child are usually causing more problems than they solve, and while Espio and Mighty are at least two members I can call competent, they aren't much use when they let themselves get dragged into trouble so easily." Knuckles stared, unconvinced.

"You used to be _on_ that team." Julie-Su turned away, eyes focusing on the big monitors.

"And that's why I know it's the truth." She stood from her chair, strolling over to where the squirrel sat. "Ray, contact that team _now_." Tapping an impatient finger against the metal of her arm, she watched as the boy worked. _'Chaos, I could use that coffee right about now…'_

xxx

" _We're gonna celebrate,_ " Tails and Charmy sang back in the watch tower, imagining themselves onstage with their idols. The young pair had gotten caught up into the performance, dancing and laughing as the concert played on screen. Charmy spun in the air as Tails remained in his seat, spinning nonetheless. Their enjoyment was infectious and even Espio, who had been meaning to remind them of the job at hand, was finding it hard to stop them. He spared a glance to their usually gruff leader, the tiniest of smiles finding its way onto his face. Vector was reclined, eyes closed as he snapped his fingers in time to the song. Times where this group was actually quiet and peaceful were a rarity…he supposed he could wait until Mighty returned to remind them of their duty. This wouldn't be the only time the triplets performed a concert after all; he was just wary of Knuckles checking in on them and finding them too relaxed…or even _worse_ -

Abruptly, so sudden even Vector fell out of his chair, the view of the concert was replaced by an irate, familiar pink visage.

"CHAOTIX." Tails and Charmy seized up immediately, eyes wide as they were caught in the middle of dancing. Vector had fallen backwards and now quickly scrambled to get in his seat, trying (and failing) to look as if he'd been alert the whole time. Espio sighed, a hand over his eyes as his fears came true.

Julie-Su, Angel Island's second in command of its security branch and their ex-team mate. The partially cybernetic echidna looked far from happy, one hand on her hip as she glared at them. Espio could spot Knuckles off to the right behind her; the guardian didn't seem too pleased either. At that the ninja felt a bit of guilt creeping up on him. Their friend usually gave them a lot of credit, despite the opinions of others. Right now they weren't living up to it at all.

"Y-yeah! What's up, Su?" Vector grinned uneasily. An intense glare landed on him. "Er, I mean…"

"You wanna tell me why you haven't identified that ship yet?" Their superior barked, her tone in complete no nonsense fashion. Taken by honest surprise, all four of them froze.

_'What?_ ' Espio whirled around, being the quickest to act. Yellow eyes widened as he saw the screen none of them had paid attention to, too engrossed in the concert. A red dot was on a display of the planet, the color signifying that it was an unknown ship not matching any of the records in their database. He hid a wince, already berating himself like he was sure the others were doing now. Eager to rectify their mistake even as Julie-Su continued to glare them down, the chameleon quickly manned the console, locking onto the ship's signal and addressing it in a calm, professional tone.

"Security tower 70759 of Mobius to unidentified spacecraft—state your name and purpose." He paused for the reply.

None came.

The others were suddenly silent behind him, and Espio narrowed his eyes. "I repeat, security tower 70759 of Mobius to **unidentified spacecraft** —state your _name_ and _purpose_." He paused again, eyes focused on the blinking dot. Again, no reply was given and the chameleon felt the oddest sense of dread trickling down his spine. That worried him-his instincts were never wrong. "If you do not identify yourself we will be forced to—"

A loud and shrill noise sounded through the speakers, piercing every set of Mobian ears in the room. Espio grabbed the sides of his head, inhaling sharply as the pain nearly brought him to his knees. The others could be heard crying out in pain as well, and a clear curse from vid-screen told him they must have received it on Julie-Su's end as well.

"Th-the…screens…" Tails was heard groaning. The group turned to see each of the screens suddenly flickering and becoming unfocused, turning into a fuzz of static. It was at that time that Mighty burst into the room, immediately crying out and falling into the same position they were in.

" _What's going on?!_ " he ground out, making his way over to the fallen chameleon.

Espio opened his mouth to answer, but every device in the room chose that exact moment to shut down, plunging them all into dark silence.

xxx

There was a total of five seconds before anyone moved, and that was only because of the sharp intake of breath Knuckles had before he bellowed.

"What in _chaos_ was that?!" The reserve power kicked in, providing them with dim lighting and giving limited access on a few of the system consoles in the room. Julie-Su immediately went into action, her earlier fatigue forgotten.

"Get us back online! I want to know what the hell happened and whether that ship is responsible!" she commanded; a flurry of typing resounded throughout the room, fingers flying across the keys as they worked. Knuckles was beside her in an instant, the look on his face telling her he shared the same thoughts she did. The ship was more than likely the source, but how would they have affected their systems from space? "I don't like the looks of this," she muttered to him.

"Neither do I, but if anything odd is happening I have to–" A thunderous boom sounded distantly within the building and the floor they stood on shook, inciting panicked yelps and shrieks. The two echidnas in command stilled, recognizing the all too familiar sounds of an explosion.

You could have all the years of peace you wanted, but seven years of fighting ingrained certain experiences into your memories for life.

" _Where did that come from?_ " she whispered urgently, straining to listen properly and barking an order for silence when security workers continued to panic. Knuckles grasped her arm tightly, catching her attention. His body was rigid with tension, and even in the low light, she could spot the intense amethyst locking gazes with her.

" _Downstairs,_ " he hissed, and she understood.

_'Shit, the Master Emerald.'_

"I'm going down there," he said, releasing her arm and heading straight for the main doors. She spun around, reaching for him.

"Wait! Knuckles there are guards already stationed around the chamber–I need you here," She reasoned, not wanting him to rush into anything blindly. The guardian paused by the door, glancing over his shoulder at her. He shook his head.

"You're in charge here, Su. Commanding is _your_ thing. I don't care who's on duty down below, I'm not about to let someone else handle _my_ responsibility." With that, he disappeared behind the doors to investigate, most likely heading straight into trouble. Julie-Su clenched her hands into fists, her hands itching to grab the gun holstered to her leg and follow her friend into battle. Knuckles might have been right about her fitting the role of a leader better than he could, but they were alike in several ways, one of them being that she didn't like to sit back while others fought. She'd gotten too used to having the older echidna watching her back during the war and vice-versa. Right now, she wanted nothing more than to run after him, gun in hand and ready to fight if she had to…

But that was something she would have done in the past. There was no time for that right now. She had a job to do. Steeling herself, she whirled around to see that a few of the workers had paused in their alarm and were looking at her.

" _Well?_ I want those systems back online, now! I want visuals of the entire temple and a full alert sounded. Ray," The squirrel barely turned his head at his name, nodding to show he'd heard and fingers still busy across the keys.

"Yes ma'am?"

"Find me a working com link. I need to send a message to Queen Aleena!"

xxx

As the last few notes of the song faded away like remnants of an enthralling spell, a wave of cheers rose from the audience. The musical trio opened their eyes and smiled, pausing for a moment to catch their breath before heading into the next song. Sonic glanced back at his siblings, each giving him a quick nod to signal that they were ready. The cobalt guitarist turned his dancing green eyes to the crowd, leaning forward to grip the microphone close.

"You guys have been amazing! I don't think there's a planet out there with a better crowd than the one here tonight!" he winked, inciting another round of cheers and—did he hear a scream? He laughed. "This next song is an old favorite, we hope you guys enjoy!" Gloved fingers released the mic to take their proper place on the guitar; three slow taps of a red sneaker cued the others to the start of the song.

Manic tapped out the intro, and the threesome plunged into a chant of 'na-na-na's as their respective instruments synched to create a playful, upbeat rhythm. The Mobians below began to bounce in time, many recognizing the familiar tune as a song from their in-hiding days. Determined to focus on the beat and not the memories that came with it, Sonic opened his mouth to belt out the first line.

The back wall of the stadium erupted, sending a shower of debris and dust flying over the crowd, effectively cutting him off. There was a collective cry of shock from those who were closest to the dust cloud, and the confusion was apparent as everyone began to jostle one another in panic. Unaware that he was already acting instinctively, Sonic barely acknowledged the weight of his guitar transforming into the lighter, much more manageable weight of his sacred medallion. Despite the lack of action in years, it seemed he was already prepared to be on the move; his body was tensed in preparation. _'What in Chaos?'_

An ominous creaking had Sonic turning in time to see one of the damaged legs of a camera tower completely give away. It gave a violent sway before falling towards the middle of the crowd, and panicked Mobians cried out as they shoved and pushed trying to avoid it.

"Sonia!" the cobalt hedgehog called out earnestly to his sister, throwing an expectant arm back. Not missing a beat, Sonia swung herself over her keyboard even as it shifted into medallion form, landing in an easy crouch beside her brother and grasping his arm securely.

"Ready!" she called out. They zipped off stage instantly, leaving a signature blur behind for a few scant seconds even as Sonic braked to a stop yards away, putting Sonia in place before dashing off again. Sonia threw up her arms to meet the giant steel framing of the tower, grunting with exertion as the full weight dropped on top of her. She braced her legs to keep from sliding and pushed back against it, exhaling slowly as the brunt of the tower lessened and her deceptively lean muscles held it with ease. _'Whew, that was a close one.'_ A passing streak of blue from her right told her Sonic was still relocating a few of those who hadn't moved fast enough to a safer distance. She looked back towards the stage, relieved to see Manic and a few security officers helping to guide people onstage and towards the exits. That was good, the sooner they got everyone away from this area the better.

"Having problems, Sis?" She turned to Sonic with a brow ridge raised, already shifting her grip so she could set the tower down. She carefully dropped it and stood, placing her hands on her hips.

" _What_ problems?" she retorted haughtily; Sonic grinned at her. She was about to tell him off when a few terrified screams had them both spinning around towards the hole in the stadium. The dust hadn't cleared much, but it wasn't hard to make out the imposing figures marching in through the hole they had no-doubt created. They looked like—" _Robots…?_ " Sonia breathed in disbelief.

Sonic glanced at her and back at the miniature army that was making its way over. If Sonia thought so, that was usually enough for him, but _robots_? There weren't any robots like _that_ on Mobius, only small, _annoying_ helper units shaped after the planet's Chao—servants and nothing more. He frowned, noticing his sister was already on edge. It was a shame that their concert had been interrupted, but if a bunch of overgrown bolt-for-brains thought this was going to go easy, they had another thing coming.

His confidence took a hit when the line of robots began firing lasers, and the first row of fleeing Mobians that it hit instantly crumpled to the ground. A spin-dash was ripping through eight of the bots before Sonia had a chance to gasp. The ninth took a homing attack to the chest and Sonic rebounded off of it to land on top of the fallen camera tower. By now the arrival of the robots had sent all remaining Mobians into a full blown panic, and the stadium was hardly emptied out of innocent bystanders. More robots seemed to instantly show up in place of the ones destroyed, but none were actively pursuing the two hedgehogs that were standing as the greatest obstacle between the fleeing Mobians and their antagonists.

Two pairs of emerald green met across the stadium grounds, speaking wordlessly; Sonic nodded to show Sonia he understood. Revving into his signature move he immediately joined the fray, tearing a path through any bots that got too close to the fleeing crowd. Sonia took down her first robot with a solid punch that left a hole in its middle, focused on keeping them back and buying time as everyone was evacuated. Eerily identical looks of determination crossed the sibling's faces.

Cloaked by the smoke still billowing from the charred sides of the hole, a stocky, crimson and ebony robot raised one of its giant arms as it scanned the perimeter, heedless of the screams and cries of panic from the fleeing life forms. It held no data on such creatures, and therefore they held no importance. It had one function in this mission, and that was to ensure that the targets were subdued. A shrill beep signified a positive reading on the target's location, and the robot's automatic targeting system attempted to lock on, as its clawed right hand shifted into a high-tech launcher.

E-123 OMEGA REPORTING. TARGETS LOCATED. E-SERIES 101- BETA – 102- GAMMA – 103 DELTA. BEGIN RETRIEVAL.

Omega zoomed in on the battlefield, bypassing for the moment the two most aggressive targets and honing in onto the green figure onstage, whose intent of aiding the weak would prove to be its downfall. He locked on and fired, the projectile crossing the distance in seconds and sinking dead center into the green hedgehog's chest.

Manic had been splitting his worries between helping Mobians escape to safety, and in making quick glances across the field to see how his siblings fared. He was in the middle of shooting a reassuring smile to the young rabbit girl that was reaching for him, when a sharp pain stabbed him in the chest. He had a few seconds to glance at the dart in sudden, drowsy confusion before he slumped over on the stage. Shade, one of the security guards who'd been giving him a hand, turned at the sound of the now screaming girl and immediately paled at the sight.

"MANIC!"

In mid-spin through a line of the robots, one blue ear swiveled immediately towards the distressed cry. Sonic jerked to a halt, following the direction of the sound until his eyes caught sight of the situation and his breath caught in his throat. _'Manic.'_ He shot over, crouching beside the orange echidna that held Manic's head in the crook of her arm as she pulled a dart from his chest. The hedgehog felt his heart falter—seeing his brother so still was unnatural.

"What's wrong—?"

"He's fine, he's only unconscious! _Look out!_ " Shade cried, gesturing over his shoulder. Sonic turned, already poised on the balls of his feet thanks to her warning. She'd given it with good reason. Two odd looking robots hovered over the stage, blue and red with the numbers 103 and 102 painted on their bases respectively. Jet boosters on their backs cut off abruptly and the pair dropped onto the stage with enough force to crack the floor of it, an unnerving hiss sounding as their hydraulic legs pumped and absorbed the shock. Sonic immediately changed his position into a defensive one, placing himself between the attackers and the innocent. The appearance of these two proved too much for the already shaken Mobians attempting to escape onstage, and like a receding tide the crowd began to push back in the other direction, only to stop when they realized that they were horribly pinned in. Shade gave a cursory glance over the people she was supposed to be protecting, clenching a hand into a fist when she saw a few desperate souls attempting to climb out of the stadium bowl.

_'Well, this one isn't going to be easy.'_ Emerald green trailed casually over the weapons the two carried. He could guess at what kind of weapon the red one was packing, but it was the twin firearms the other one carried that made him just _slightly_ uneasy. It'd be simple enough to ensure that a close fight with these two didn't involve bystanders, but not if one of them was packing something particularly destructive. Risk his own hide Sonic could do, but not at the expense of someone else's safety. The movement of one stepping forward caused him to lock gazes with a pair of pulsating green out of instinct.

"TARGET – 76642. YOU WILL SUBMIT AND OBEY."

Sonic blinked. Well, what do you know, they spoke! Forsaking his former stance, the ex-freedom fighter crossed his arms, tucked one foot behind the other and simply raised a brow ridge. The _'are you kidding me'_ was read easily even before he smirked; the fierce glint in his eyes belied the mirth he appeared to be deriving from all this. They'd crashed the most awesome concert of all time and they wanted him of all people to _submit_?

"I think you guys have the wrong planet," he stated matter-of-factly, wagging one finger at them. Their only response was to raise their weapons. "And you most _definitely_ have the wrong guy if you think you can attack Mobius while I'm here." A grin flashed across his muzzle and he bolted forward, straight into the red bot's midsection.

SWAT bot parts littered the ground, becoming a common scrap heap in the wake of a magenta tornado that tore through the lot of them. It came to a halt, with Sonia slowing down in a pirouette like stance that should have seemed out of place in the middle of a battle. Granting herself a momentary rest as more bots came, she wiped the sweat from her brow with a frown of distaste and grabbed her medallion as it transformed into its laser-rifle form, still fighting the urge to look back. She'd heard clearly when Shade had cried her brother's name, but there was no time to be concerned since Sonic had gone to check it out—she had to be alert. With him gone, that left her taking on _all_ of them; while they were easy to destroy, it was getting hard not to notice something was going wrong.

They were a peaceful race, sure, but that didn't mean they slacked any security wise. They had enough security guards in this zone alone that there should have been _some_ back up by now, and that wasn't counting the imperial guard that would have been summoned not only for it involving the royal family, but hostile off-worlders. If that didn't worry her, then knowing that Manic had been attacked when she and Sonic hadn't (despite being the main threats) certainly did. The bots she and Sonic had fought never shot at them directly, or they refused to.

_'Yet Manic gets attacked?'_ It just didn't add up. Sonia shook her head, kneeling and taking aim at one of the oncoming bots. She went to take a shot, shutting one eye to improve her aim before squeezing the trigger. The shot rebounded off of a black robotic form that appeared suddenly in front of her; she gasped, firing again out of impulse. The shot rebounded off once more as she stumbled a few steps back. It hadn't been there a second ago! From where—she shot a quick glance upwards, cautious. Had it come from up above?

It made a move and she tensed, narrowed green eyes watching as its twin fire-arms transformed into simpler, robotic hands. Her rifle disappeared in a flash of white light, returning to its medallion form since it'd be useless against a shielded opponent. A loud crunching sounded from behind her, and she turned her head slightly to glance back (mentally rattling off a few choice words her mother would've found unbefitting of a princess) only to see that _another_ large bi-pedal robot had landed behind her. If anything it looked even more intimidating than the others put together, with its spiked wrists, large hands and bulky frame. This wasn't good, if she didn't—the first robot shifted! Sonia jerked back and to the left with a swift quickstep, silently thanking Chaos that she'd lived with a supersonic hedgehog long enough to learn something from it.

It _still_ managed to catch her.

Cold metal fingers wrapped around her throat and lifted her off her feet, leaving her with no other options but to kick and punch at the metal limb as she fought not to choke. The vice-like grip tightened despite her hits, and she abandoned her fighting to grasp at it in vain. She could hear the movements of the second robot closing in behind her, and the fear of what they might do won over her usual pride.

"SO- _NIC!_ " she managed to screech out.

Something was up.

Sonic could sense that from the moment he'd attacked these particular robots. Almost immediately after his first homing attack the robot pair had switched from daunting weapons to ordinary hands, appearing much more intent on making a catch than fighting him. Even then his attacks hadn't done much, and these robots were no cinch. He'd already begun to suspect something, but Sonia's panicked cry wrapped around his name nearly stopped him mid-dodge. Flipping backwards to avoid a lunge from the red bot, he risked a glance his sibling's way only to see her dangling from an identical robot's grasp. Another rose a bulky arm and shot her point blank in the back. She went limp, and Sonic responded to her scream with a yell of his own, torn between running to her aid and defending those here with Manic—an impossible choice.

"Sonic!" the blue hedgehog glanced at Shade, even as his attention stayed trained onto the large robot that was turning this way and the two on stage that stalked even closer. "My prince, they must be after the royal triad! You have to run!" she yelled, still cradling the youngest prince protectively. It was too dangerous to leave him unguarded. Sonic shook his head.

"I can't do that! You need me!"

"Please, my liege," Shade pleaded, one of her hands straying to the grey circlet that bordered her left wrist. Her eyes were trained onto the approaching bots as well. She met her prince's stubborn gaze momentarily. "If they are targeting the triad your first priority _must_ be to prevent them from getting what they want!"

Sonic stilled for all of a second, looking from his sister, to his brother, then to the robots that were closing in on him and Mobians around them…before arriving at the same conclusion she had. There was a pained look of resignation on his face that she understood, but she knew he'd make the choice if only because it kept the innocent that much safer. He bolted past her in a flash of blue, inciting two of the robots immediately into a chase.

That still left a few problems to sort out…

Shade leveled the remaining blue robot with a determined stare as it approached, matching its slow, ominous movements with her own as she carefully placed Manic onto the floor and stepped over him, placing her between the two as an obvious obstacle. E-103 Delta froze at her actions, impassively scanning her before issuing a prompt command.

"INVALID LIFE-FORM. SURRENDER TARGET. "

Shade crossed her hands to press a button on each of the grey, cog shaped circlets attached to her gloves. Purple energy blades simultaneously hummed to life as they were projected from their hiding places. She shifted into a more combat ready stance, the glow of the dual weapons illuminating her furred cheek as she held up curled fists, and glared her aggressor down.

"You'll have to kill me before that happens."

E-103's hands shifted back into missile launchers in response.

xxx

Sonic dodged hard left and skirted around a corner, one hand braced against the floor so that he could duck in the same movement. A laser shot missed him by inches, passing over his head to scorch the wall instead as he shot off in the next second, ears perked for the sound of screeching wheels behind him.

_Wheels_. Robots didn't just come standard with rockets, guns or jet packs, did they? No, these guys had to be ready for anything. The minute he'd juiced and jammed, the first robot had traded legs for treads and sped on after him. He had been sure his knowledge of the stadium's music hall would make losing them a breeze, but these long, windowless corridors were proving less _grand_ and more _pain_ in his escape attempt.

The expected sound of wheels screeching as they took the same corner he had (and not as well, he was smug to note) echoed in the empty hall behind him, and Sonic put on an extra burst of speed. He wasn't trying to get a taste of those lasers again. The first shot had just barely grazed him, sending the oddest tingling down his calf as if it were going to freeze up and fail on him. Two shots fired off behind him and he dodged to the left, moving to skirt around the next available corner. The wall ahead of him burst open, and the monstrous robot that had shot Sonia came hovering through, its weapon leveling directly at the fleeing prince.

" _Whoa!_ " Sonic jerked back just in time, dismissing the white blurs that whistled past his ear and making a daring dart forward. He shot underneath the mechanized giant, breaking for the opening it had left and launching out into open air. The rush had sent blood racing in his veins, cueing a level of split-second maneuvering he hadn't been forced to experience in ages. A wild grin snuck onto his face, prompting him to glance back at the pair pursing him with mock remorse. "Thanks for the invite guys, but I'm _outta_ here!" He hit the ground running, heading towards the city of Star Light and its network of streets, hoping to lose them in the myriad of alleys and sharp turns. There was no way he'd be able to go to the castle with _these_ guys on his tail. The sounds of boosters and lasers began to fade as he pulled away, and thinking he'd seen the last of them he smirked in triumph…only to have it wiped away when he saw the path ahead.

A black robot, marked by the '101' on its chest, was one he recognized as Sonia's captor, and it blocked his way a few yards down. It was raising both fire-arms in his direction and before Sonic could even _think_ about backpedaling there were missiles soaring wildly through the air. _'Shit!'_ He dodged to the right, throwing himself out of range but unable to fully avoid the impact. The proximity of the explosion left a ringing in his ears, and he stumbled in his next step, instinctively shielding his eyes. The sound of another two being fired off was lost on the deafened hedgehog and before he could recover, the next missile exploded at his feet, sending him airborne.

The force sent him flying backwards, bouncing roughly against the paved road before skidding to a stop. _'No'_ he thought, gritting his teeth and immediately attempting to rise. The robot was beginning to walk over—he couldn't stop now! Faintly, the whistle of a projectile registered in his hearing, and the downed speedster felt something sink into the back of his neck before he could stand; his eyes widened. His limbs seemed to instantly fill with lead, turning into dead weight and dragging him back to the ground. _'Wha…is this… what they did to Manic?'_ he mused numbly, fighting the powerful tranquilizer on sheer will alone. _'And Sonia too'_ he recalled how quickly she'd grown still. Heavy footsteps were steadily making their way from both sides, and Sonic strained to look up. His vision swam; he could only make out robotic feet, but the sound of a spaceship could be heard in the distance. Amidst his losing battle, he realized that wherever he woke up, it wouldn't be here. _'Man, is_ this _is gonna suck...'_ The darkness over took him.

xxx

The high wails of an alarm permeated the skies around Angel Island HQ, with the occasional boom and bang sounding as smoke drifted above the treetops. Walking stoically away some distance from the aftermath, E-121 Phi made his way back to the parked ship, carrying the giant green gem that was the Master Emerald over his head with ease. E-104 Epsilon flanked his right, missile launchers at the ready. The two were the only remaining bots of their squadron, but it wasn't as if they would have noticed this. Running a sort of auto-detect, the awaiting ship opened the door and boarding ramp, inviting its passengers inside. Just off the path behind them, a rustling grew as the foliage was desperately trampled and pushed aside.

"Wait!" The pair continued to walk, paying the cry no mind. The bushes parted to reveal a frazzled Mobian, her ice blue eyes frantically searching around. Catching sight of the robots, the young fox sprinted to catch up, circling around the two to cut them off. "Hey, wait a minute!" she panted lightly, already winded from the mad dash she'd made just to find them. They moved as if to pass around her, and she dug frantically into her back pocket. "You can't leave me here, Eggman made a deal!" She held up a black card, thin and metal, branded with the same maniacally grinning logo that marked the hull of the ship behind her.

The robots halted, the smaller one making no other move than turning to look at its partner. Epsilon took a step forward, causing the girl to tense as it scanned the card. There was a moment of pause, and the towering robot stepped back with a dull beep.

"INVALID IDENTIFICATION. AGREEMENT IS NEGATED." No longer halted by distractions they passed her to continue walking to the ship. Her arm dropped, along with her heart, and a panic threatened to overtake her. _'I_ can't _stay here…'_

"Cut the shit!" She whirled around, throwing the worthless card at them. It bounced harmlessly off of the small robot, and she glared at the way they remained unfazed. "Hey! I'm talking to you!" She caught up to them, scooping a rock from the ground as she did and preparing to hurl it. The orange robot rotated on its base to aim a launcher point blank at her face. Her mouth instantly went dry with fear, freezing up with the rest of her as she stared straight down the dark barrel.

"INVALID IDENTIFICATION. AGREEMENT IS NEGATED." It repeated, almost as if it were warning her this time. She dropped the rock, unaware that she'd automatically held her hands up like some victim in a mugging. Epsilon lowered its weapon and turned back, following Phi into the ship without another word and cueing its door to close. Was that it then, she was so unimportant she wasn't even worth killing? The ship started up its thrusters and began to rise, leaving Fiona Fox to watch helplessly as it took off into the sky, abandoning her on the outskirts of the floating isle.

_'Stupid! You've been double-crossed!_ Now _what are you going to do?'_ She gripped her hair in aggravation. _'I wasn't supposed to be here, that was the plan! If I get caught—'_ Following the pattern of her luck, there was a sudden cluster of voices heard in the underbrush.

"This way, I heard engines!"

"Don't let them escape!"

Fiona cursed silently, backing away out of the area and away from the approaching guards. By the time they arrived she was gone, the tracks of bi-pedal machines and a black card in dirt the only things left in the clearing.

The twin ships met on course as they left the planet, shifting back into stealth mode and out of the atmosphere just as swiftly as they had arrived. Back on the ground, Tikal limped out of the breeched HQ, holding her side as she leaned against the crumbling doorway to stare forlornly into the sky. An ominous feeling was growing in her gut; she could sense the shift of balance in the very air around her-it grew heavier by the minute.

"Chaos help us," she whispered.

* * *

To be continued in chapter three: This Dream and You

If you can tell me what Sonic Underground song the trio was about to launch into before everything went to hell, you get chilidogs. 

 


	3. This Dream and You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> G.U.N agents are alerted and put on the case. Meanwhile, Queen Aleena deals with a suspect...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Song in this chapter is Digital Love, by Daft Punk. Any song lyrics in this story are necessary for the story flow, meant to give that Sonic Underground feel for music. This is not a song-fic.
> 
> Hey, sup. No, you're not being pranked-I'm alive and updating.

A soft beep chimed on an idle data-pad resting against the console, with a message popping onto its screen: _System Maintenance – Completed_. Seated in the reclined pilot's seat, a blonde in a form-fitting blue jumpsuit sat up from where she'd been tinkering and glanced towards the controls. The green light on her data-pad blinked twice as if to confirm; her face lit up with realization and she spun away from her work to face the main controls, scooping up the pad and resting her booted feet upon the dashboard. Muttering quietly as she worked, she tapped across the screen with expert fingers.

"Hull capacity – green, shields - green…" she trailed down the list quickly and a brilliant smile broke out across her face as she reached the end of the list. "—all clear!" She closed the window with a flick and reached forward to press a button on the control panel. A holographic window sprang to life. "Hey, Shadow? How's the clean-up going?" She called out, watching the screen as she waited for an answer…

 _**Last night, I had a dream about you** _  
_**In this dream, I'm dancing right beside you**_  
_**And it looked, like everyone was having fun  
** **The kinda feeling, I've waited so long…**_

Shadow drifted to a stop, shutting off the hull cleaner he'd been walking alongside and looking around to survey his work. A notification interrupted him, beeping twice inside the helmet of his space-suit before displaying a view of the cockpit on his visor: His partner smiled at him from inside. Automatically, he lowered the volume of his music player.

"I'm almost done here," Shadow replied. He held onto the cleaner as he pressed a switch, releasing its hold onto the ship so that it floated weightlessly in his hands. "Another half hour and we can head to the nearest base to get that system upgrade." He eyed the girl coolly. "We can _finally_ get that cockpit replaced." The blonde let out a scandalized gasp on screen, giving the console a pat as if reassuring it.

"Leave it, she's a classic!" the dark hedgehog rolled his eyes.

"Maria, it's an outdated model on an upgraded ship. Get with the times." He pushed off with his foot, floating in the direction of the door. Maria rolled her own eyes back in immature rebuttal, but cut the act when a smile curved the hedgehog's lips. She answered back with a winning smile of her own and waved her pad.

"Maintenance diagnostics are done," she tucked a loose blonde strand behind her ear as her gaze darted to another screen and back. "We're good for now, so we can do inventory before the base hangar and stock up on supplies when we get there. You hungry? I was thinking we should take a lunch break - we haven't had a bite since we started." Her partner shrugged.

"There isn't much left to do, missing a meal won't hurt me."

" _Please?_ " She sang, clasping her hands in a pleading gesture. "You've been out there for ages—you can forget about work for a _few_ minutes." Shadow snorted.

" _Whose_ idea was it to cut our vacation short by signing us up for extra duty?" Maria gave him a sheepish grin, apologetic but amused.

"Are you _still_ upset about that concert on Mobius? I said I was sorry! I'll get a disc of the concert next time we visit."

"We could've had everything cleaned at a station, you know." He continued on dryly, opening a small panel to access the keypad for the door. Maria made a 'tsk' sound, waving a slender finger.

"What's the point of the pay bonus if we waste it on something boring like that?"

"Fair enough," he conceded, punching in the code for the door. "…but that disc better be hi-def."

" _Fan-boy_ ," she mocked with a grin.

"Get your feet off of the console." He shot back indifferently. A minute twitch of her body gave her away but she crossed her arms and tilted her chin up.

"They aren't _on_ the console—you're not denying it either, are you? Boy, you've got it bad for that band." Her blue eyes twinkled mischievously. "Or _one-third_ of it anyway…"

" _Maria._ " He cut in with a half-hearted growl. She laughed, giving him a wink to show she meant no harm.

"Okay, okay. I'll see you on the bridge." She closed the vid-screen before he could reply and drew her feet back from the console instantly. Her jostling knocked the data-pad from her lap, sending it to the floor with a clatter. Shaking her head, Maria bent over to retrieve it. "How does he always _know_?" she wondered aloud, picking it up and flipping it over to check the screen for scratches. Her eyes softened when she did. The numerous programs had been closed, revealing the old photo she kept as her background theme. In it, two men stood side by side. One was a bald, wizened scientist with a bushy mustache, and the other a stern looking soldier in uniform. Beside the old man a young girl and a certain dark hedgehog held hands, gazing back at the camera with content smiles. The grand building they stood in front of bore the same logo that that was emblazoned on her data-pad and shoulder: a bold white 'G' that sat in the middle of a red and blue shield inside a white star.

So many years ago…she'd have been twelve then. A gentle smile graced her lips as she traced the old man in the picture with a finger. _'Grandpa…if you could see us now…'_

It was amazing to think about how far they'd come. He'd be proud, she was sure. After all it had been Gerald Robotnik who'd co-founded the service dedicated to upholding peace and prosperity amongst the stars. The man had been forever guided by a drive to protect others, be it his own dying race or some unfortunate planet in peril. He'd given her a cure and a brother at the same time and instilled in them both a purpose and sense of duty to aid those in need. Even when he'd passed away, it wasn't long before she and Shadow found themselves joining the G.U.N ranks in honor of his memory. Now they were seasoned agents. _'Miss you grandpa…'_ Maria thought to herself, darkening the screen of the data-pad with a light tap of her finger.

A display on the HUD indicated that the storage units for the space suits were being accessed; Maria pressed down the intercom button.

"So what should we eat? I'm feeling a bit generous so I'll make anything you like."

Shadow stepped out into the main hallway of the ship, the door hissing shut behind him as he raised his arm and spoke into his wrist communicator.

"It doesn't matter to me, Maria. You can pick." He covered his mouth as a yawn crept up, but managed to shake it off. "Just call me when it's ready."

"You're not coming up?"

"I'm going to relax for a bit." He turned down the hall and headed for the bedrooms.

"Well, just don't fall asleep, we have to get that inventory done."

"I won't," He replied, opening the door with the press of a button and stepping inside. Maroon walls greeted him, a match to the dark, wooden floor in an otherwise plain room. It wasn't really wood of course, just floor panels that could digitally emulate any texture he chose. It could have been grass if he wanted, but he liked to keep things simple. ' _Painfully simple'_ as Maria had called it more than once. Even his bed was plain, covered in the same standard issue coal grey sheets that he always replaced the previous set with (it drove the girl crazy). Making a beeline for it, he dropped down onto the mattress with a sigh, and let his eyes rove over the room appraisingly. Now that he was thinking about it...it wasn't _that_ bad, was it? He had a few furnishings aside from the desk, chair and built-in wall com. A digital picture frame sat on the desk, projecting an old photo of Maria and Gerald. Beside it, some of the awards he'd gotten for his services were displayed—the few he had proudly accepted despite his discomfort of hero worship. A frown crossed his face as he realized there was little more than that to his room. Although…

 _**Don't stop, come a little closer** _  
_**As we jam, the rhythm gets stronger**_  
_**There's nothing wrong, with just a little, little fun**_  
_**We were dancing, all night long**_

Garnet eyes drooped dangerously low as his ears picked up on the media player in the wall that continued to play; the song he'd had on loop earlier was on its umpteenth cycle. He'd never stopped the track while he was bantering with Maria, so the song was back where he'd left off. It was incredibly relaxing, and that made it easier to acknowledge the truth of his best friend's teasing. The biggest personal touch in his room was the number of _Sonic Underground_ posters. A few were just pictures, here and there, like the cover of a past album or the advertisement of an upcoming performance. The biggest one graced the ceiling, and most of the posters in general displayed the guitarist smiling brightly, front and center. Impossibly green eyes stared out at him, so lively even in print that Shadow couldn't fathom being able to handle them in person.

…Okay. So he _might_ have had a bit of a crush on Sonic. It wasn't his fault, really. While he hadn't met any of the triplets personally, or even been on the planet longer than a few days at a time, he... _admired_ the group and their music, what they meant to Mobius even without the royal tag. It was a detached sense of pride he felt, knowing their story. Shadow wasn't a native but his love for the planet was no less. He'd been doomed the moment he first saw the prince.

 _**Oh, I don't know what to do** _  
_**About this dream and you**_  
_**I wish this dream comes true**_

His eyes began to close despite his earlier assurances to Maria, but he couldn't help it. Not when he was staring into the eyes of his crush while listening to him croon out the rest of Digital Love. The colors of his room blurred as he drifted off, melding with his muted senses and lingering thoughts to pave his way into dreamland. Almost immediately he found himself running, attending the concert he'd wanted so badly to see and then taking a personal tour through the famed Mobian zones, blurring past the sights at supersonic speeds as he traversed them with the very Mobian prince he was modeled after. Just the two of them…

The loud, extremely unwelcome blaring of an alarm abruptly brought him out his dream; Shadow was up instantly—that was the signal of an emergency call. He was already out the door and running down the hallway when Maria jumped on the intercom.

"Shadow – get up here, _now_! We've got a call—"the door behind her opened just as she was checking the transmission.

"HQ?" the dark hedgehog questioned, hopping into his own seat on the right and turning to face the controls. Maria shook her head as her fingers worked, a frown already furrowing her brow.

"No, it's being patched through by them but it's…Mobius." Shadow mirrored her expression, not liking the thoughts that immediately welled up at that news. Mobius was in the middle of a well earned peacetime; nothing that required G.U.N interference could be good. A vid-screen popped onto their display, and the pair were suddenly faced with the Queen herself. Despite the urgency of the matter, they remembered to bow their heads, if not shortly.

"Your majesty," the two G.U.N agents echoed in unison. Queen Aleena gave a curt nod of her own.

"We were attacked," she spoke hurriedly, calm and succinct. "Approximately 20 minutes ago, two small ships were deployed from a larger vessel just outside our atmosphere—they attacked swiftly, disabling our communication and security systems before making off with the Master Emerald…and my- the royal triad." The queen managed to continue on but she was blinking rapidly, ignoring the way her throat had tightened on the last bit of information. Not mentioning her children directly was a means of retaining control and Shadow respected it, even as his hands tightened on the armrests. Queen Aleena nodded to the two of them, lips tight as she glanced somewhere off to the side. "I can send you some footage of the attack, anything that will help you track them down. Our systems missed most of it, but we managed to catch them leaving." The screen changed abruptly; Maria left the information gathering to him as she entered the coordinates to the nearest jump point for Mobius and strapped in.

Shadow couldn't think to do the same yet, he was in a mood solely for soaking in information without distraction, and _chaos_ it was hard not to get angry. The video had started with different shots of a ship—no, _two_ identical ships. One was leaving the island that housed the Master Emerald at top speed, leaving a ravaged temple behind. The scene changed, and this time he couldn't stop the rush of anger. The concert had been violently interrupted; there was debris surrounding a gaping hole and robots marching about, attacking citizens. A pair of robots were carrying two of the triplets on aboard the second ship. Then there was Sonic, bolting for the city before he was stopped in his tracks by missiles and then also collected. The two ships met up with their stolen cargo and fled for space. Queen Aleena's face was back on the screen before he could wipe off his scowl. "All that was stolen is vital to Mobius – please return them to us." _Bring them back to me_ , she didn't need to say. All Shadow managed was a curt nod, finally thrown out of his thoughts as Maria fired up the thrusters, still speaking to queen as she did.

"We will your majesty. Please contact the commander at HQ for any additional assistance you may need planet-side. Unit Arc – signing out."

"Yes, good luck to you." The transmission ended just as the ship roared to life in Maria's hands, turning about and blasting off for the nearest jump point. Shadow was busy doing his part, prepping the weapons on his side in case of any altercations and reviewing the mission details being sent from HQ. His mind was racing even as he did—Sonic, _kidnapped_? He'd seen it, but he still couldn't understand how it had happened, or why anyone even had the gall. It wasn't a good sign that he was more concerned with this than the theft of one of Mobius' major power sources, but he was sure the Queen was having just as much trouble with that. The thought soothed him a little, made him feel less weak.

"Preparing for jump," Maria informed sharply, and suddenly they were shooting off—the stars around them blurring into whiteness and occasional streaks of color. The two were forced back into their seats a bit, but within minutes they were slowing down, exiting the jump point and soaring through the familiar stars of the Genesis system. Maria piloted at full speed, taking the shortest route that led to Mobius. Shadow watched one of the displays in front of him, crimson eyes narrowing as they swept across the readings. "Anything on the scanners?"

"Nothing yet, not like what we're looking for—wait… there!"

"I see it." His partner confirmed. Their ship was approaching the planet fast; while the vast space surrounding it was seemingly vacant, their heads-up display told a different story. A large mother-ship was pulling further and further away up ahead, cloaked from view and putting on enough speed to outrun any immediate pursuers. Unfortunately for them, Maria and Shadow had the Arc. The sleek spacecraft hurtled after the thieves, closing the distance quickly.

"Warning shot," Maria called out. The dark hedgehog squeezed the triggers of his controls, and a beam shot towards the ship's thrusters. The ship appeared for a few seconds, its stealth disturbed by the attack. As expected, the shot was absorbed with a telltale shimmer of the ship's shields. They didn't want to damage the ship, not with the precious cargo on board, but it would certainly grab their attention. A boost of energy to the thrusters signified this as the mother-ship shifted directions and attempted to flee. They gave chase, easily following the bulkier ship until they were alongside it. "You're clear!"

"Firing disrupter," Shadow called out, aiming for the broadside of the ship and firing. An orb of energy spiraled forward and collided with the invisible shield again, this time rippling across the surface in a swell of light as it dispersed, bringing the ship into clear view. "Shields down!" The mother-ship swerved, trying to pull out of the Arc's range as it realized the status of its defenses. As the chase approached a nearby asteroid field, Maria gave a caustic laugh.

"Bold for someone without protection, but I don't think so," The Arc flew in after them with the same assurance, weaving with expertise as Shadow repeatedly tore down the shields they tried to fix. The pair couldn't be shaken off, no matter what rock the larger ship tried to steer them into or duck behind. Abruptly, hatches on the ship opened and a flurry of robots came flying out, heading right in their direction.

"They know they can't outrun us-they're trying to buy time and keep us busy." Shadow remarked with disgust at the amateur level of this offender. They had to be toying with them, this wasn't the same work of someone who'd taken out the triplets... "I need a clear shot with the ion cannon."

"Hang on, we'll show him _busy_." Maria muttered, pushing the steering handles down and sending the ship into a sharp dive as she avoided the first of the robots. Shadow redirected the weapons and began their counter attack, flawlessly matching Maria's elegant piloting with his aggressive blasts. The Arc wove around the asteroids even as they attempted to stick to the mother-ship; a few unlucky bots clipped the rocks and exploded, unable to keep up or taken out by a laser blast if they got too close. Up ahead, the mother-ship was pulling away, clearing the asteroids and heading for an open area of space that was developing a faint white shimmer, warping as the ship neared it.

"Maria, they have a jump drive!" Shadow growled. It was rare for most ships in this sector to have the _clearance_ to use jump points let alone have the tech to create one on board. It was no wonder they had crept into this system so effortlessly.

"They won't get away!" Maria turned the ship around, abandoning her elaborate maneuvers to give chase, shooting out of the asteroid field. The hatch on the ship lowered again, releasing another swarm of robots. Shadow shot down as many as he could, unwilling to let them distract them from their pursuit. The shields were giving them decent cover from the robots tailing them, their lasers too weak to get through. Maria dodged and rolled past the remaining ones, locking onto the ship and preparing their own jump. An alarm popped onto their HUD, and Shadow tapped away at the controls, frowning.

"Something has latched onto us, these robots aren't the same-they're draining power from the Arc!" Maria sucked her teeth in vexation, launching the ship into a spin that would've made any inexperienced pilot sick. Shadow remained unfazed, eyes focused on the readout as a few of the robots were dislodged from the hull. The drop in power draining slowed, but stubbornly pulled on their resources. Up ahead the gateway was widening, a warp in space finally big enough for the mother-ship to jump through. " _Maria_!"

"I know, we can't waste time fighting - prepare for a jump!"

"Do we have enough?"

"We'll be cutting it close but we can't lose them - divert power from the weapons to back us up, we'll have to try."

Shadow did just that, watching the energy levels rise to combat the drain. The shields were suffering; it was barely enough protection for such a hasty jump and they'd have to face that problem once they arrived to their next destination, but at least they'd be close to wherever this ship was heading. That was enough for him.

"Power diverted."

"Hold on!" The mother ship disappeared with a distorted stretch and a flare of light, and the Arc blasted forward, shaking the last of its clingy passengers as it followed in an identical flash.

xxx

Queen Aleena turned away from the now vacant screen in front of her, closing her eyes with a sigh as her communications with the two G.U.N agents were cut. It was out of her hands now, there was nothing more she could do outside of Mobius for her children or the Master Emerald - a fact that was hard for her to swallow. She was glad for the aid of G.U.N, as advanced as they had become in the past decade, there were still many capabilities they had yet to discover. Aside from their defenses planet side and on the merchant ships they occasionally sent out, there was little they could handle when it came to taking their fights to space. A pursuit was simply out of the question. They'd come so far...were a few years all they deserved when it came to peace? Had they not suffered enough? Had her children not been taken away from her protective reach plenty in this lifetime? A mother could only bear so much...

The doors to the throne room were pushed open, and a small company of guards walked in with grim looks on their faces, a figure bound between them with chains. Aleena sat up straighter, her features schooled into a more aloof appearance even as she gazed upon them curiously. A mother could only bear so much, but a leader had much to suffer for the sake of her people. Hopefully she would finally have some answers. She waved away the screen still floating near her throne, and a servant dutifully stepped forward to remove it. The troupe halted in the middle of the room, shoving the mobian forward so she stumbled and fell to her knees harshly with a gasp.

"Sir Valdez," Aleena nodded to the blue chameleon in charge. He gave a stiff salute. "What news have you brought me?"

"Your majesty, we found _this_ one attempting to flee Angel Island. She claimed to have seen the attackers and was going to pursue them."

"You doubt this?"

" Upon questioning and inspection we've discovered she was not involved in any of the attempts to defend the temple and abandoned her station. The security footage is being reviewed as we speak but there is already suspicion of inside tampering with our security just before the attack. She's currently our only suspect on the case." Aleena nodded, mostly to herself, as her eyes roved over the form still forcibly kneeling before her. A young fox, one who didn't look too much older than her own children. She couldn't fathom it, not really. One so young could be behind such dastardly events like today?

"I see..." The young fox continued to look down, a stubborn set to her jaw. "Could I not gaze into the eyes of the one behind such actions? You must have been confident enough when you set out to do this. Could I at least know your name?"

"What does it matter? It's not like you plan to respect to me or anyth-" She yelped as the wombat soldier on her right nudged her roughly with his foot.

"You're the one who should show some respect to the _queen_!" Aleena wordlessly raised a hand, and the soldier relaxed back into position. Valdez nodded to his ruler.

"Fiona Fox. A technician working at the Angel Island security branch. She performs maintenance on the communication networks and has enough understanding of the system to be behind the breach. This was found near the landing site of the ship, not far from where she was discovered. We suspect it was also in her possession." Valdez held up a card, encased in a clear cover. Even from where she sat, Aleena could make out the symbol that marked the ships that had made off with her children. Her green eyes narrowed.

"You seem to be the missing piece to this entire night, miss Fiona." The queen uttered coolly. Fiona's head shot up, blue eyes alight. If the regal hedgehog was surprised by her ire, she didn't show it.

"Don't talk like you know! You think you understand everything after one report from your lackeys - you're every bit as pompous as I thought you'd be." The soldiers around her stiffened, ready to silence her rude words, but Aleena held up a hand again, halting them. She wanted the girl to speak. Fiona had paused, but realizing she was going to be allowed her say, she licked her lips, continuing. "You think I did it? Then prove it first before you talk big. What will you do then? Take your anger out on me while you sit on that chair worrying about your precious triad? _The Sonic Underground_ , praise them, for they play _music_. I made sacrifices during the Black War your kids could never stomach, but no one ever sang _my_ praises. And for _what_?!" She screeched at the Queen, growing angrier with every second that passed with no real response. She knew from the way the soldiers beside her grew restless that she was pushing it, but she'd never have another chance like this to freely say what she felt. Hell, how many chances of any kind did she even have left? Her plans had all gone to hell... "You're so stupid, thinking that everything we went through during the war could just be forgotten over some pathetic 'peace' concerts your kids use to please the masses. It's all just one big ploy to make your family look good." The young fox snarled angrily, hands wrapped tight around the dangling bit of chain between her wrists. Aleena looked on silently after her rant, unreadable for the few minutes it took Fiona to catch her breath.

"Remove the shackles from her, please." She finally spoke. Fiona's eyes widened, and the guards around her glared at her in warning.

"Your majesty...?"

"Remove them." She insisted. Valdez stepped forward to release her chained limbs, and a heaviness she hadn't been aware of lifted from her. Fiona repressed an inward shudder. Her gaze was drawn back to the queen who was staring at her with a look of compassion. She felt her stomach turn. "I will not imprison you. I'm sure you've had plenty of that to last you a lifetime, am I right?"

She wanted to be angry at the assumption. She'd had enough of this haughty noble and way she pretended to have absolute control of the situation... but she couldn't help the relieved nod she gave at the words. A glare was still on her face, albeit confused. "I am always willing to listen to my people, so you can rest assured that I will look into this investigation thoroughly before passing any judgment upon you. I will even give your words some thought. You will not be held prisoner, but until the plot behind the capture of my children and Master Emerald is uncovered by G.U.N, we certainly cannot let you run free. Should you feel the need to confess or shed some light on your actions to help us understand what happened tonight, you may request an audience with me and I will hear you out. You may not leave the castle premises, but for your safety your movements will be limited within and you will be escorted at all times. Is that clear?" Fiona gaped for a moment at her fortune, staring at this idiot of a Queen as she sat on her throne making nice with the mobian who'd sold out her own planet. Confining her to the castle of all places and without any bonds?

 _'He was right'_ she thought to herself confidently. _'They_ are _a bunch of self righteous fools_ '. The guards beside her stepped forward and lifted her to her feet, saluting their queen once again before they turned her about to escort her from the room. A smirk was fighting its way onto her face when Aleena called out.

"Oh, Fiona. One other thing," the Queen's voice rang out softly. The guards halted and immediately turned her around. She was prepared to raise an eyebrow, a sardonic look of intrigue plastered onto her face, but it dropped. She felt almost cheated by the entire previous exchange, because only now did she feel like she was gazing at the Queen of Mobius. The violet hedgehog had her hands folded in her lap, but her green eyes were no longer soft with compassion. They were sharp and pitiless. "All that I said before regarding your stay here was true, however we are still in the midst of surveying all the damage that happened tonight. Many people were injured, some mostly stunned to our relief. But...if you are found to be behind tonight, and you've tainted what was to be a joyous event with even _one_ mobian's death, it will be on your head. Every reasonable agreement about hearing you out will be invalid. You will pay _dearly_." Fiona flinched. Wordlessly, she nodded, and Aleena's face lost some of its chill as she waved them away. "...that will be all."

A solemn Fiona Fox left the room with her captors, wondering not for the first time if she'd gone about this the right way.

xxx

Outside the brilliant blue-green sphere of Earth, a section of space began to shift and warp. Abruptly it seemed to tear open with a bright flash, and a large space ship appeared out of nowhere. It cloaked itself from sight and made way for the planet surface, entering the atmosphere and departing quietly.

Seconds after, the G.U.N ship Arc came hurtling out of a similar portal, spinning wildly out of control. Maria and Shadow grunted as they were tossed around in their seats; the cock pit was shrouded in the blood red of the emergency lights as the hedgehog yelled over the blaring alarm.

"Maria!" The blonde gripped the controls tightly, desperately trying to direct them despite the failing power and the damaged engines. They were lucky to be alive after the shields had dropped at the last second and their pesky robotic leeches hadn't survived the trip, but now they had bigger things to worry about, like where to _land_.

"I'm fine, we just have to make an emergency landing!" Amongst the alarms, a notice was still on her HUD, indicating that they still had a target. "We've still got a lock on them! If I can just-" She righted them finally, turning the ship in the direction the mother-ship was heading as it dipped towards the atmosphere. The Arc obeyed her commands at first, but upon entry the ship was rocked by an explosion to the rear - the right thrusters. Shadow cursed as they veered off course and started a deadly plummet for the surface. The window was covered with flames as they entered the planet, and it took every skill Maria knew about piloting to keep them from spiraling down towards open sea. She poured the last of the ship's power into one boost, propelling them forward from water to open land. "Shadow! Prepare for impact!" Her partner gripped his own set of controls, lending his strength as the ship fell helplessly. The ground came up to meet them in a thunderous crash, crushing the nose of the ship as it slammed into the hard dirt and skidded several yards. A long trench was left in the wake of the crash; fragments from the ship littered the ground as thick smoke billowed from the wreckage. Inside, the two G.U.N agents remained strapped in, unconscious to their surroundings. The cracked display of their HUD repeatedly beeped, tracking the progress of their target until it vanished behind the abrupt notification: SIGNAL LOST.

xxx

The elusive mother-ship continued its journey, shifting its now visible appearance to that of a jet plane. Sweeping neatly through the mountainous area it was soaring over, the ship came upon a tall, elaborate compound stamped with a familiar grinning logo. 'Eggman Co.' was written along the sides of the building, surrounded by a high fence an abundance of surveillance systems. Touching down onto the stretch of concrete behind the building, the ship came to a smooth stop before opening the hatch. The doors of the building slid open with a hiss, and a figure walked out to greet the robots marching neatly from the ship, each with a gift in tow. Phi held the largest prize, a gargantuan gem more than twice his size. The mastermind rubbed his hands eagerly as he watched his minions unload the ship, eyes glinting with glee as his mind raced with possibilities. A devilish grin spread across his face as his most recent creation marched towards him; three of his robot brethren followed behind him, each standing beside a floating container - his remaining prizes no doubt.

"Well? Status Report, Omega!" He snapped. E-123 Omega stoically lifted a clawed hand to its face, as if saluting. It wasn't a proper execution, but he'd specifically programmed this robot for respect and he appreciated the effort in his subordinates.

"YES, DOCTOR EGGMAN. RETRIEVAL OPERATION WAS SUCCESSFUL. RETREAT PERFORMED AT: 93% EFFICIENCY."

" _What_?" Eggman growled, eyebrows raised high above his shades. "What problems did you run into?"

"A PURSUIT WAS INITIATED."

"And you got rid of them, _right_?" The doctor questioned menacingly.

"AFIRMATIVE. SIPHON UNITS WERE DEPLOYED. PURSUERS FAILED TO COMPLETE JUMP TRAVEL." Cackling at this news, he clapped his hands together in glee.

" _Excellent, excellent_. Now, why don't you show me my newest test subjects." The three SWAT bots ushered the floating stretchers in front of him; he glanced down at them with an eyebrow raised and curled his mustache.

"Ah yes...some interesting specimens. Looks like our little stool pigeon spoke the truth. Good job, boys. I'm sure they'll prove useful for what I have in store for them. Take them down to the laboratory to Snively. We have some... _adjustments_ to make before they'll be of any use to me." The bespectacled man laughed sinisterly before following the robots inside.

_'First, I'll take Station Square. Then? The world...'_

* * *

To be continued in chapter four: Perfect Chaos

 So, okay-no, I am not interested in hearing how long this took to update-I fucking know. I have the rest of the chapters written, they're just shallow drafts that need dialogue filled in and errors cleaned up so I'll try to dish those out when I can now that I have some down time. I'm going to work hard this coming month to get this story out of the way. Fiona is an interesting character to write, since it is a completely new element to the Interstella adaption this is, I want to do her justice. I don't expect anyone to like her, but she has her reasons for doing all of this, good or no. I hope you enjoyed Fanboy!Shadow, that's probably the most lighthearted you'll see him about the topic for a while. Next chapter should be much chunkier as the interactions and dialogue increase a bit.


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